Deflategate was more about punishing Kraft than Brady

Why wouldn't Kraft go Rogue if he doesn't have support from any of his fellow owners? Also, I am just about finished following the NFL.

On this week’s edition of Kirk Minihane’s “Enough About Me” podcast, Sirius XM radio host Chris “Mad Dog” Russo said he has spoken with nine NFL owners who told him that the Deflategate discipline handed down by commissioner Roger Goodell was more about punishing Patriots owner Robert Kraft than it was suspending quarterback Tom Brady.

“They want to get TV ratings,” Russo told Minihane, who then proceeded to spell out the thought process of the owners he spoke with.

“’Do you think we want Goodell to suspend the best player in the league? Its star? For the first four games of the regular season, which includes a game against the Cowboys and the first opening Thursday night game of the year?

“‘We got Kraft. We don’t like Kraft. We got him already. We nailed him for a million dollars, and he lost a first-round pick and a fourth-round pick. And we made sure that Kraft did not appeal it because we all bombarded him at the owners’ meetings and said ‘Bob, you’ve got no support here. Do what you have to do. You have no support. Nobody is going to back you up.’”

He added: “So Kraft took the sword and that was the end of it. ‘We didn’t need Brady, too. We got Kraft.’ ”

The latest edition of “Enough About Me” with Russo will be posted to WEEI.com on Thursday.

say it ain't so Bob

I don't believe that for a second. I'll be convinced forever that the original and primary target was Bill Belichick. When it became apparent that nailing Bill directly wasn't possible, Goodell, the league and the other owners then just moved on to the next available victims, which happened to be Brady and Kraft. Nailing them was nailing Belichick indirectly by screwing his best player. While I certainly believe that Kraft and Brady have enemies due to their unprecedented success, BB is the one they all wanted to really f###. Just my opinion.

Jackson 2 said:

I don't believe that for a second. I'll be convinced forever that the original and primary target was Bill Belichick. When it became apparent that nailing Bill directly wasn't possible, Goodell, the league and the other owners then just moved on to the next available victims, which happened to be Brady and Kraft. Nailing them was nailing Belichick indirectly by screwing his best player. While I certainly believe that Kraft and Brady have enemies due to their unprecedented success, BB is the one they all wanted to really f###. Just my opinion.

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Yeah, it is hard to believe it was Kraft. Maybe Bill just rubs them the wrong way because he's smarter than them? The carwash and bakesale comment probably wasn't taken lightly .

NFL owners have their own special circle .....4a .... Dante needs an appendix to add it.

Greatest sport in the country owned by spiteful .... dysfunctional smitten children.

What's clear is that the owners don't think of the players as people, but as servants on their plantations. Brady as collateral damage just doesn't matter to them, except as a tool for TV ratings.

So he took one for the 31 owners that don't like him?

Nehalem said:

So he took one for the 31 owners that don't like him?

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He chose not to fight a battle he knew he couldn't win.

Understandable, but I still think that sometimes you need to fight those battles, just to let the other guys know that you're willing to stick up for yourself.

With a few minor tweaks here and there to the roster and assuming health, I would dearly love this team, for the sakes of Belichick and Brady to go 19-0 and moon the entire NFL establishment on the podium.

This thinking isn't as unreasonable as it first appears as the owners have proven to be sour ****s.

If that were true why would the NFL appeal and continue to bleed money to the lawyers? It's about jealousy and knocking the Patriots, Kraft, Brady and especially Bill down as many pegs as they can. When they couldn't get Bill and suspend him for a year or better yet impose a lifetime ban they decided they would get as much blood otherwise as they could. Bill's FU attitude at the meetings only confirms it. Rodger enabling Kensil and Pash in place of firing them when they clearly had an agenda against a team confirms it.

Bob Kraft is the last man the owners should want to punish. Kraft has helped the league make more profit in some deal negotiations.

I guess their jealousy of Kraft's success outweighs everything else. Kraft didn't spend Tax payer money to build Gillette Stadium. Instead he gathered the money privately to build the stadium. He may be a pansy, but Kraft has more integrity and honor than all the other 31 owners combined.

What a bunch of backstabbers. I would hire some thugs off the street to watch my back and kick some ass. But that's me. I would be mad as hell if I was him, and I would be looking to hurt somebody by any means necessary. TOM BRADY SHOULD SUE THE NFL....TAKE THEM ALL OUT TOM. He needs a better team of lawyers though.
I live by one creed in life...TRUST NO ONE. This creed has served me well. Bob better start living by this creed. He's got no friends in that league.

More evidence for Brady in a defamation suit!

I don't like chris russo at all. He was 100% positive brady was guilty and went completely nuts over it.

Edit: here is the video of Russo in deflategate

This adds up to the way Kraft spoke about his accolades under his ownership. Subtle message to other owners maybe.

As i've felt all along, deflategate was about NFL ownership getting back at the patriots.

Jackson 2 said:

I don't believe that for a second. I'll be convinced forever that the original and primary target was Bill Belichick. When it became apparent that nailing Bill directly wasn't possible, Goodell, the league and the other owners then just moved on to the next available victims, which happened to be Brady and Kraft. Nailing them was nailing Belichick indirectly by screwing his best player. While I certainly believe that Kraft and Brady have enemies due to their unprecedented success, BB is the one they all wanted to really f###. Just my opinion.

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Yeah, after he made Harbum look like a mega fool in the previous game I think they were out on a mission to throw Belichick out of the league but he is smarter than all this dirty people and probably has all his bases covered since 2007, when they did approach him he must have told them to **** off in an embarrassing way that's why they cleared his name promptly. I would expected these mobs to try to make him suspicious as well or put a cloud on all his statements but that's not what happened, and it's weird knowing the behavior and bad faith of these people.

FrodoBagginz said:

Bob Kraft is the last man the owners should want to punish. Kraft has helped the league make more profit in some deal negotiations.

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He also came in as a newby, pushed to the head of the table, told other owners to eat what Goodell was serving, and, probably his greatest sin against the other 31, made them all look very bad by financing a new stadium without goring the taxpayer. They have every reason to resent him.

Oh, and then there's all that winning at their expense, too.